The Liverpool captain, Steven Gerrard, has been ruled out of the club's pre-season tour of Asia in an attempt to get him fit for the start of the Premier League season.

The 31-year-old had been expected to travel with the rest of the squad for their eight-day trip to China, Malaysia and Singapore, but will now stay at Liverpool's Melwood training base as he continues his rehabilitation following groin surgery in March.

Although the news suggests that Gerrard may have suffered another setback in his recovery, the manager, Kenny Dalglish, insists the decision to leave the midfielder behind is a positive one.

"Steven and the medical team have done fantastically well so far and they are in the final stages of getting him back to full training," Dalglish said. "I'm sure there will be supporters disappointed that Steven is unable to be with us in Asia.

"But I'm sure the same people will appreciate the importance of Steven giving himself the best possible opportunity of being fit to play against Sunderland on the opening day of the new campaign. Steven continuing his rehabilitation programme at Melwood is in everybody's long-term interests."

Gerrard added: "I'd really been looking forward to travelling out to China, Malaysia and Singapore and meeting first hand as many of our fans as possible, and I'm really sorry that I won't now be able to do that.

"But after sitting down and talking with the medical experts and technical staff, it's been decided that the best course of action is for me to continue my rehabilitation programme at Melwood. It's disappointing I won't be with them, but I'm sure the lads who go out there will put a great show on for our fans."